With so much natural beauty in Cornwall and more choice than ever to glamp it up, it’s the perfect place to go back to nature. Colette Beckham from Cornwall’s AONB picks the crème de le crème of camping
Camping at Henry’s is a brilliant experience. This quirky, sociable campsite, just on the fringes of Lizard Village is tucked away and secluded from the world. You are treated to your own generous pitch area, bounded by your very own granite hedge. The shop is open for scrumpy and its feels like you might be stepping back a little in time when you sit down round the communal campfire and meet your fellow campers. The kids love the little nooks and crannies of Henry’s, which is a place where kids can really go a bit free range and feral! They especially love communing with Henry’s pigs. Henry’s festival…
South Penquite Farm, Bodmin Moor
There nowhere with a greater sense of wilderness in Cornwall than Bodmin Moor and South Penquite Farm is the perfect staging post from which to explore it. Hunkered down on the edge of the moor, close to Blisland, the Farm itself is a working organic farm with some impressive highland cattle and they have a very strong conservation track record (some of the moor surrounding the farm is a Site of Special Scientific Interest, SSSI). The farm offers a wide range of accommodation with camping, yurts and bunks for families, groups and individuals. From the farm you can strike out of foot and be treated to some spectacular scenery along the De Lank River which is absolutely idyllic. If you’re lucky you may spot Kingfisher, Otter or the elusive Cornish Moneywort
Get back to basics with this amazing campsite that I think is just simply wonderful. A very simple set up with a couple of small fields, simply pull up and pitch. Booking essential though. This campsite is so brilliant it needs no real publicity other than word of mouth. If basic isn’t for you then the farm offers four holiday cottages on site, if you’re after something a bit more salubrious. The farmhouse sits on the stream at the back of Porth Joke (Polly Joke to those in the know), accessible only over a sandy unmade track, or on foot over the headland from Crantock. It’s a short walk with your beach gear down the sandy path to Polly Joke beach which is so pretty there’s no need to venture anywhere else.
Atlantic View, Trevemedar Farm, Porthcothan
There is no way that this campground can be described as ‘nestling’. A quite large, basic campsite (toilet block with showers), it sits on the elevated coastal shelf above the lovely coastal village of Pothcothan, in the AONB. Its location sets this campsite apart from the rest. Porthcothan beach is one of the best surfing beaches on the North Coast (in my humble opinion) and it’s a short walk to the beach down the coastal path. There’s also a small secluded cove that is dreckly accessible from the campground for those able to cope with some steeper ground. Great memories of diving through the shorebreak with friends, body surfing at high tide and one of the most stunning sunsets ever.
Treloan Coastal Holidays, Gerrans, Porthscatho
Moving away from the drama of the North coast, Treloan near Porthscatho offers south facing, sunny tranquility and boasts some of the most stunning coastscapes in the Roseland/Cornwall/UK/world has to offer. This is a truly gorgeous campsite with a yurt and the Honeycomb Snug (ideal for couples). They campsite really tries to plug you into local life and in summer they host a regular Wednesday fireside session of poetry and music where locals and visitors can meet and mingle.
Cotna Eco Retreat, Roseland Peninsula
The final site to mention is Cotna Eco Retreat which won the Cornwall AONB sponsored category of ‘Best Contribution to Sustainability’ in the Cornwall Sustainability Awards in 2016. Run by Sara Readman-Smyth and Dave Readman, this is a working smallholding growing all types of fruit and veg. Expect to get roped in immediately picking blackcurrants (an excellent form of meditation).
Accommodation is in a lovely straw bale studio, a shepherds hut (Ismay) or one of three stunning yurts. Gillyflower will always have a place in my heart! Cotna is exactly what it says on the tin, an ecological retreat where you can really stop the world and get off.
